Writing implement



Aug. 24, 1965 P. M. PLATZMAN WRITING IMPLEMENT Filed Aug. 21. 1961 2 M4 .w 6 8 f 4 4 4p 1 4 m m Hm VA/12; lf/Ad 1 m Kw C S a w w 5 Z 2 0 46 4 f 3 Z 4 4 I I x INVENTOR 404 M. PLAvrz/vm/v ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,202,133 WRITING IMILEMENT Paul M. Piatzman, Brookviiie, NY. Ultrasonic Industries Inc., Ames Court, Engineers Hill, Piainview, Long Island, 'N.Y..)

Filed Aug. 21, 1961, Ser. No. 132,796 7 Claims. (Cl. 120-8) This invention relates in general to a writing implement and in particular to a writing implement which produces highly visible, non-eradicable markings on paper or other fibrous materials by means of mechanical vibrations. The invention can be used in any application that requires the marking of fibrous materials, but it is particularly useful in applications that require permanent markings which are unaffected by sunlight, heat, water, eradicating fluids, erasers, or the like.

Implements for writing on fibrous materials are, of course, old in the art, but most of these implements have utilized writing fluids of one sort or another to produce visible marks on the surface of the fibrous material. Although these implements have proven effective in use, they have nontheless suffered from several major drawbacks which are inherent in the use of writing fluids. One such drawback is a lack of permanence in their markings. Most writing fluids can be obliterated by Water or eradicating fluids, and those which are able to resist eradicating fluids can be readily obliterated by erasure. Furthermore, many writing fluids will fade when exposed to sunlight, heat, or moisture. This drawback is particularly serious in connection with the Writing of checks, legal documents, or other papers which must be protected against alteration or obliteration.

In addition, these writing implements are subject to clogging due to accumulations of dirt or paper fibers in writing fluids. The formation of lumps is a particularly serious problem in connection with india ink, which is.

the most permanent of writing fluids. Furthermore, these prior art writing implements, being gravity fed, cannot be used in an upside-down position, and they cannot be used. in very hot or very cold ambient temperatures because writing fluids will only flow properly in a very narrow range of ambient temperatures. These prior art implements are also seriously affected by dust or other airborne contaminants and by extremes of humidity. In the case of industrial or medical recording devices, the inkfeed mechanism must be periodically cleaned, refilled, and maintained at the proper flow conditions to assure continuous operation of the device. But even with the. best of maintenance, the ink-feed mechanism of these recording devices will often clog and result in the loss of vital information.

In the prior art, some of the drawbacks of writing fluids have been avoided by using non-fluid marking materials such as graphite, crayon, Wax, or the like, but these materials are easier to erase than most writing fluids and they also require refilling since they are consumed during the writing process. Furthermore, many of these prior art non-fluid writing implements require specially processed paper of one sort or another thereby making them expensive and inconvenient in use.

Accordingly, one object of this invention is to provide a writing implement that will produce truly permanent markings on paper or other fibrous materials.

Another object of this invention is to provide a writing implement which is adapted to operate over an extremely Wide range of ambient temperature and ambient humidity and which is unaffected by dust or other airborne contaminants.

An additional object of this invention is to provide a writing implement which can be operated continuously without refilling.

A further object of this invention is to provide a writing implement which is more reliable in operation than those heretofore known in the art and which requires less maintenance than those heretofore known in the art.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description of several specific embodiments thereof, as illustrated in the attached drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a cross sectional view of a first embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a partial cross sectional view of a second embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 3 is a partial cross sectional view of a third embodiment of the invention.

In general terms, this invention comprises a writing probe which is mechanically vibrated at ultrasonic frequency by an ultrasonic transducer. In accordance with this invention it has been found that vibrations of this type will produce highly visible marks on paper or other fibrous material. When the probe is applied to the paper, the vibrations of the probe produce a high density paper area which contrasts sharply withthe unmarked surface of the paper. The effect is not limited to the surface of the paper, but rather extends throughout the paper, whereby the marks cannot be removed without destroying the paper.

Referring to FIG. 1, one illustrative embodiment of the invention comprises a writing probe 10 which is rigidly connected to an ultrasonic transducer 12 by means of a joint 14-. Transducer 12 can be formed from an electrostrictive ceramic material such as barium titanate or from a magnetostrictive material such as nickel. When transducer 12 is made of non-metallic material, joint 14 is preferably an epoxy glue joint, and when transducer 12 is made of metal, joint 14 is preferably a brazed or soldered joint. Writing probe 10, of course, is preferably made of metal and as shown, the apex (the part which comes in contact with the paper), is curved or rounded as opposed to being pointed to avoid cutting or perforating the paper..

The writing probe-ultrasonic transducer assembly is secured within a hollow case 18 by means of an O-ring 21B and end plug 22 which are both made of a resilient material which holds the assembly in place against normal writing pressure but which allows relatively free longitudinal vibration at ultrasonic frequency. O-ring 20 also serves as a fluid seal when a cooling fluid is used to cool the transducer element.

Transducer 12 is excited by ultrasonic frequency electrical vibrations from an oscillator 16 to produce ultra-.

sonic frequency mechanical vibrations in the transducer in accordance with well known prior art principles. The coupling etween oscillator 16 and transducer 12 is indicated schematically in the figures, but it will be apparcut to those skilled in the art that this coupling is effected by means of electrical conductors which enter the device via a plug or opening in case 18 or cap 22, which screws onto the top of housing 1'8. It will also be apparent that these conductors will be coupled to transducer 12 in accordance with well known prior art techniques.

This particular embodiment of the invention is adapted to be cooled by a cooling liquid or gas which is pumped into the device via an inlet hose 24 and removed from the device via an exhaust hose 26. Hoses 24 and 26 are preferably concentric, as shown, to simplify the struc ture, and they are attached to the top of cap member 30 by a connector 23. Fluid from inlet hose 24 flows into the hollow center of transducer 12 via a channel 32 cut in cap 30 and a channel 36cut into end plug 22. The fluid leaves the transducer via an opening 45 cut into the lower end thereof and flows into exhaust hose 26 via to bond the fibers together.

a second channel 38 cut into end plug 22. and a second channel 34 cut into cap 3%.

Although the above described forced circulation cooling system may be preferable in some embodiments of the invention it is by no means essential to the invention. Other embodiments can be made with gravity driven cooling systems such as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. The embodiment of FIG. 2 is fitted with a solid end plug 42 and a finned cap 43 which acts as a radiator. Case 13, which is made of metal in this case, is covered by a heat insulating sleeve 19, to protect the users hand from heat, and the interior of the assembly is preferably filled with transformer oil, Dowtherm, or some other non-conductive fluid having good heat transfer properties. Transducer 12 has a second opening 49 in the top end thereof to facilitate the flow of convection currents within the device.

FIG. 3 shows an embodiment which utilizes a magnetostrictive transducer 46 which is driven by a coil 48 wound therearound. Coil 48 is energized by alternating current from oscillator 16, which produces ultrasonic mechanical vibrations in accordance with well known prior art principles. This particular embodiment of the invention is cooled by a gravity fed air circulation through ventilating holes 56 formed in the top and the bottom of case 18, which in this instance is preferably made of heat resistant plastic. This particular embodiment uses a solid end cap 44 instead of a finned end cap.

The type of cooling system, if any, used in any specific embodiment of the invention will depend upon the writing power requirements thereof and the efiiciency of the transducer used therein. In some embodiments of the invention it may be possible to entirely eliminate the cooling system, but in others it may be necessary to use either the gravity fed or forced circulation cooling systems described above.

All of the above described embodiments of the invention are used just like an ordinary pen or pencil; i.e. they are moved across the surface of the paper with normal writing pressure. The vibrations of the writing probe then compresses and re-orients the paper fibers to produce a marked area which contrasts sharply with the unmarked surface of the paper. The exact reasons for the sharp contrast is not known, but it is believed that the heat generated by friction between the probe and the paper may cause molecular changes in the paper fibers and in the bonding materials (clay, gum, or resin) used The mechanical polishing action of the probe and its compression and re-orientation of the paper fibers are also believed to contribute to the contrast. But in any event, the vibrating probe has been proven to produce highly visible marks which cannot be altered or eradicated without destroying the paper. It should be noted, too, that these marks can be made through grease spots, stains, waxed surfaces, or plastic impregnated surfaces, which repel conventional writing materials and render the surface unmarkable with prior art writing implements. It should also be noted that no specially treated paper is required in this invention; the marks come out highly visible on any standard type of paper.

From the foregoing description it will be apparent that this invention provides a writing implement that will produce truly permanent markings on paper or other fibrous materials. It will also be apparent that this invention provides a writing implement which can be operated continuously without refilling, and which can be used in an extremely wide range of temperature and humidity. It will be further apparent that this invention provides a writing implement which is more reliable than those heretofore known in the art and which requires less maintenance than those heretofore known in the art.

Although this invention has been described in connection with several specific embodiments thereof, it should be understood that this invention is by no means limited to these specific embodiments. Many modiflca tions can be made in the structure disclosed, and this in vention includes all modifications falling within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. A method of marking on a fibrous material, comprising the steps of using a relatively rigid writing probe having a substantially rounded apex, placing the probe in contact with the fibrous material, vibrating the probe at ultrasonic frequency, and applying normal Writing pressure and moving the vibrating probe across the surface of the fibrous material to compress the fibers receiving said probe to thereby produce a marked area.

2. A writing implement comprising a relatively long, hollow case member which is open at one end, an ultrasonic transducer mounted within said case member, a relatively rigid writing probe having a relatively rounded apex connected to one end of said ultrasonic transducer and projecting through the open end of said case member, and said ultrasonic transducer being adapted to receive electrical oscillations and to produce mechanical vibrations in response thereto, the outer surface of said probe being substantially continuous, a case, said probe being held to said case at one end in continuous fitting relationship to thereby prevent any fluid flow to said probe.

3. The combination defined in claim 2 wherein said ultrasonic transducer is mounted within said case member by means of resilient members communicating between said transducer and said case member.

4. The combination defined in claim 3 and also including a cap member adapted to be removably secured to the other end of said case member.

5. The combination defined in claim 4 and also including a fluid inlet channel formed in said cap member, a fluid outlet channel formed in said cap member, and means on said cap member for receiving a fluid inlet hose and a fluid outlet hose.

6. A writing implement comprising a relatively long, hollow case member which is open at one end and which is adapted to receive a removable cap member at the other end thereof, a cap member adapted to be removably secured to said other end of said case member, a relatively long ultrasonic transducer element mounted within said hollow case member, said transducer element being secured to said case member by a resilient O-ring communicating between said transducer element and said case member and a resilient end plug communicating between said transducer element and said cap member, a writing probe having a rounded apex rigidly attached to said transducer element and projecting through the open end of said case member, and electrical signal input means adapted to receive electrical input signals and to apply said electrical input signals to said transducer element to produce mechanical vibrations therein, the outer surface of said probe being substantially continuous, a case, said probe being held to said case at one end in continuous fitting relationship to thereby prevent any fluid flow to said probe.

'7. A writing implement as defined in claim 6 and also including a fluid inlet channel formed in said cap member, a fluid outlet channel formed in said cap member, and means on said cap member for receiving a fluid inlet hose and a fluid outlet hose.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,767,469 6/30 Metzner -42.07 1,966,446 7/34 Hayes 3 l0-26 2,792,674 5/57 Balamuth et al 51-59 2,850,854 9/58 Levy 51-59 2,990,616 7/61 Balamuth et al 51-59 CHARLES A. WILLMUTH, Primary Examiner.

LAWRENCE CHARLES, JEROME SCHNALL,

Examiners. 

2. A WRITING IMPLEMENT COMPRISING A RELATIVELY LONG, HOLLOW CASE MEMBER WHICH IS OPEN AT ONE END, AN ULTRASONIC TRANSDUCER MOUNTED WITHHIN SAID CASE MEMBER, A RELATIVELY RIGID WRITING PROBE HAVIG A RELATIVELY ROUNDED APEX CONNECTED TO ONE END OF SAID ULTRASONIC TRANSDUCER ANND PROJECTING THROUGH THE OPEN END OF SAID CASE MEMBER, AND SAID ULTRASONIC TRANSDUCER BEING ADAPTED TO RECEIIVE ELELCTRICAL OSICLLATIONS AND TO PRODUCE MECHANICAL VIBRATIONS IN RESPONSE THERETO, THE OUTER SURFACE OF SAID PROBE BEING SUBSTANTIALLY CONTINUOUS, A CASE, SAID PROBE BEING 